This documentary was released ahead of schedule after the deaths of Carrie Fisher and of her mother Debbie Reynolds, a day later.
Bright Lights is an intimate portrait of two Hollywood legends. It is Reynolds who due to age and ill health was making a farewell as a performer. Her career spanned 70 years including Singin in the Rain.
Whereas Carrie Fisher is seen in this documentary trying to get in shape for Star Wars: The Last Jedi, if only she can keep of the Coke, the drink that is.
Debbie's son Todd Reynolds comes across as the most normal even though he managed to shoot himself in the leg as a kid. He talks about how for decades he and his mother wanted to get a museum going that would house all the Hollywood memorabilia that Debbie Reynolds collected. It included a chair once used by Elizabeth Taylor, a woman who married Eddie Fisher, the children's father.
Bright Lights was meant to be a tribute to Debbie Reynolds, she is seen incoherent at times like when she goes to Hollywood to collect a lifetime achievement award. When she travels in a casino she needs a mobility scooter.
However it also became a tribute to Carrie Fisher after her sudden death. She was always more open with the demons in her life, her bipolar and use of drugs. Her father's absenteeism from her life after he left the family for Elizabeth Taylor.
Carrie Fisher also likens her appearances in Star Wars conventions to lap dancing. A quick photo and autograph for cash, it was lucrative.
The documentary was a let down in its editing to show both of them slightly out of whack. Both mother and daughter lived nearby which meant Carrie Fisher would regularly visit to take care of her mother. However once scene was cunningly edited to imply Carrie was tasting her dog's food.
It was also too scattered with footage spanning some years, so you see Carrie talking to her father who had died in 2010.
Bright Lights is an intimate portrait of two Hollywood legends. It is Reynolds who due to age and ill health was making a farewell as a performer. Her career spanned 70 years including Singin in the Rain.
Whereas Carrie Fisher is seen in this documentary trying to get in shape for Star Wars: The Last Jedi, if only she can keep of the Coke, the drink that is.
Debbie's son Todd Reynolds comes across as the most normal even though he managed to shoot himself in the leg as a kid. He talks about how for decades he and his mother wanted to get a museum going that would house all the Hollywood memorabilia that Debbie Reynolds collected. It included a chair once used by Elizabeth Taylor, a woman who married Eddie Fisher, the children's father.
Bright Lights was meant to be a tribute to Debbie Reynolds, she is seen incoherent at times like when she goes to Hollywood to collect a lifetime achievement award. When she travels in a casino she needs a mobility scooter.
However it also became a tribute to Carrie Fisher after her sudden death. She was always more open with the demons in her life, her bipolar and use of drugs. Her father's absenteeism from her life after he left the family for Elizabeth Taylor.
Carrie Fisher also likens her appearances in Star Wars conventions to lap dancing. A quick photo and autograph for cash, it was lucrative.
The documentary was a let down in its editing to show both of them slightly out of whack. Both mother and daughter lived nearby which meant Carrie Fisher would regularly visit to take care of her mother. However once scene was cunningly edited to imply Carrie was tasting her dog's food.
It was also too scattered with footage spanning some years, so you see Carrie talking to her father who had died in 2010.